Dental flask.



No. 723,999. l PATENTBD MAR.,91, 1993. A J. yH. FEAGAN.

DENTAL PLASK.

APPLIUAT'ION FILED JULY s1, 1992.

No MoDBL.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.v

J OI-IN HENRY FEAGAN, OF SPARTANBURG, SOUTH CAROLINA.

DENTAL FLASK.

SPECIFICATION fotfnjng part 0f Letters .Patent N0. 723,998, dated March 31, 1903.

Application iiled July 3l, 1902. Serial No. 117,887. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN HENRY FEAGAN, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Spar-- tanburg, in the county of Spartanburg and State of South Carolina, have invented cer-V tain new and useful Improvements in Dental Flasks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to dental flasks.

The objects of the invention are to obviate danger of cracking the teeth or of the pattern when closing the iiask-sections; to obviate spoilage of plates by inclusion of too much rubber or by failure to include enough; to obviate Waste of rubber by the provision of means to permit removal of any excess prior to vulcanization to effect escape of gas and foul odors during the vulcanizing process, thus to obviate the presentation of porous plates and to render the air of an operatingroom more pure; to adapt the liasks for use for vulcanizing rubber plates or for casting metallic ones, thereby rendering the provision of separate flasks for each ofthe above classes of work unnecessary, and, fnally,in a simple, ready, and thoroughly feasible and practical manner to reduce the labor of 'making dental plates to a minimum and to insure perfect accuracy of iit when completed.

With these and other objects in View, as will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction and combination of parts of a dental flask, as Willbe hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which'like numerals of reference indicate corresponding v parts, there is illustrated one form of embodiment of the invention capable of carrying the same into practical operation, itbeing understood that the elements therein exhibitedV may be varied or changed as to sha-pe, proportion, and exact manner of assemblage without departing from the spiritthereof.

In the drawings, Figure l is a View inperspective of a flask constructedin accordancetive detail view of the shut-ring. Fig. 6 is a similar View ofthe ring of the flask. Fig.

Before describing the present invention a 1 short explanation will be given of the iasks in ordinary use in order that the advantages of the present device may be more readily appreciated. l

The ordinary ask in'com mon use consists of three parts-a bottom or pan section, a middle or ring section, and a top or cap section-and these parts are held assembled for use in any preferred manner.

For the purpose of brevity the abovenamed parts will be hereinafter designated the pan, the ring, and the cap, respectively. y

In making a set of teeth a plaster-of-paris cast of the mouth is first obtained, and when set waxis applied to it in quantity equal .to the thickness that the plate is to be made, and the teeth` are then set in the Wax in the positions they are to occupy in the plate when nished. The pan is then filled with plaster-of-paris batter and the model or pattern just described is pressed down into the batter, with the teeth upward, until the batte;` rises iiush with the gum edge of the wax plate, and the plaster is then smoothed oevenly all around between the pattern and the flask, and after it is perfectly set is var nished. The ring is now associated with the ypan and is filled full of plaster batter, after 1 which the cap is positioned. When the plasboiling water, leaving the teeth embedded in fthe plaster.

Dental vulcanized rubber is now packed over the cast in quantity corresponding to the amount of Wax used, as

near as can be approximated; but through.

fear of not getting enoughA rubber, which will result in complete spoilage of the plateftoo.

large a quantity is frequently employed, and

when the liask-sections are being screwed toing their close assemblage, the result being the presentation of a plate having a greater thickness than desired or one thicker on one side than on the other, either of which renders it unfit for use. Further, in the attempt to force the flask-sections together the teeth and east are often cracked and the plate seriously damaged or completely ruined, and any excess of rubber is vulcanized, and thus spoiled for fu r1 her use.

The above objectionable features are completely obviated in the flask of'lhe present invention, which consists of four sections-a pan 1, a ring 7, a cap 3, and a shut-ring 4. The sections l and 2 are connected at their front by a hinge 5, the butts of which are held associated for use by a removable pin 6. (Clearly shown in Fig. 3.) The cap 3 may be associated with the ring 2 in any preferred manner to permit ready separation when desired, in this instance by providing the ring with a lug 7, having an orifice S to be engaged by a pintle 9, carried by the front side of the cap. The pan and cap are each provided with a vertically-orificed ear 11 and 10, respectively, to be engaged by a clampingrod 12, carrying a nut 13, adapted to be seated upon the cap, and thus clamp all of the sections rigidly together, the lower end of the rod being provided with a head 14, as usual. The rod 12 projects some distance above the cap to present a'handle or grip to facilitate handling of the fiask. The shut-ring 4is made of a size to fit closely around the ring and to bear upon the hinge and the ear of the pan, its front portion being provided with a yoke 15 to fit over or around the hinge 5, as clearly shown in Fig. 3.

The ring 2, which constitutes one of the essential features of the present invention, has its front and sides cut away to present gates 16, of which in this instance three are shown, the front or hinge-carrying portion of the ring being devoid of a gate, as the hinge would interfere with its proper operation and as its employment is not necessary in practice. These gates subserve the very important function of permitting rem oval of the plasterof-paris around the cast, of allowing escape 'and detachment of excess rubber, and of permitting inspection of the interior of the flask to ascertain whether a sufficient quantity of rubber is in situ.

Wherea set of teeth is to be made with the flask of this invention, the course of procedure outlined at the beginning of this specification is observed, except that when filling the ring with the plaster batter it must be associated with the pan by the pin 6 and the shut-ring is positioned, as shown in Fig. 1, to close the gates. The plaster batter is then poured in until the ring is filled to overflowing, and the cap is then secured in position by pushing the pintle 9 into the orifice of the lug onthe ring and forcing a lug 17 on the under side of the cap downward against the rear outer Wall of the ring, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. After the batter in the ring is set sufficiently not to How out at the gates the shut-ring 4 is removed and the plaster batter in the ring is allowed to set perfectly. The pan and ring are then separated and the Wax removed from the cast in the same manner as that before described. A sharp instrument is now taken and the plaster is removed from the gates and is trimmed to a feather-edge up to the teeth, so that When the pan and ring are again brought together a space of about one-eighth of an inch will be presented between the two members of the cast, so that the lattermay be distinctly seen from the rear. When the rubber is placed n situ, as before described, the nut 13 is tightened with the thumb and finger and the ask is set in boiling water for five or ten minutes to eect softening of the rubber, after which it is removed and the nut is screwed down with a Wrench, thereby accurately assembling theflask-sections. The excess of lrubber will be squeezed or expressed into the gates 16 without the necessity of exerting sufficient force to crack either the teeth or the cast or to affect them in any way, and such excess may be removed With a pair of pliers and saved for further use, leaving a neat clear cut and accurate plate in the iask. If a doubt exist that sufficient rubber has not been included,this can readily be determined by inspecting the rear ofthe flask, and,if such be the fact, to remedy this the flask may be slightly opened and additional rubber inserted within. the cast. When undergoing vulcanization,the gates permit ready and free escape of the hydrosulfuric gas which accumulates in the rubber, therebyreducin g toa minimum the liability of the presentation of a porous plate and resulting in a brighter-colored and tougher vulcanite. Further, by the provision of the gates the water in the vulcanizer is permitted to come into contact with the plate, thereby absorbing the gas above referred to and effectively preventing the escape of oensive odors from the vulcanizer, and as the cast is not strained When the fiasksections are assembled and as the plate is not Warped by the gases being locked in the flask a perfect fit will result.

The provision of the clamping-rod 12 is of importance, as it presents a ready and positive means to permit lifting of the flask when being placed within or removed from the vulcanizer.

In addition to being used in the manufacture of rubber plates the flask of this invention is adapted for use in the making of castmetal plates, thereby serving a double function and obviating necessity of the employment of a separate fiask for each class of work.

In making fusible-metal plates the teeth are prepared and placed in situ Within the flask, as above described, except that the plaster is removed only from the rear Zgate to form a sprue. The fiask is heated up to, say,` 400 Fahrenheit and is stood upon its front IOO IIO

end and is held in position by the clampingrod and the melted metal is poured into the flask through the rear gate, it being under# stood, of course, that the sections of the iask are securely fastened together by the clamping rod and nut.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that although the improvements ofthis invention are of exceedingly simple character they will result in the presentation of a thoroughly eficient and desirable flask and one that in use will be found in a ready and practical manner to obviate defects heretofore inherent in flasks in common use.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a dental fiask, a ring provided at its lower edge with gates.

2. In a dental ask, a ring having its lower edge provided with gates disposed at its sides and rear.

3. In a dental ask, a ring provided on its lower edge Wit-h gates, in combination with means for closingthe gates.

4. In a dental flask, a ring provided on its lower edge with gates, in combination with detachable means for closing the gates.

5. A dental ask comprising a pan, a ring provided on its lower edge with gates, and a cap detachably associated with the ring.

6. A dental flask comprising a pan, a ring provided on its lower edge with gates, a cap detachably associated with the ring, and means for closing the gates.

7. In a dental flask, apan provided with a perforated ear,ra ring-section detachably connected with the pan and provided with gates and with an oricedlug, a cap provided with means for engaging the oriticed lug and with a perforated ear, anda clamping-lug engaging the ears of the pan and the cap and projecting above the latter to present a means for handling the ask.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of twowitnesses:

t J OHNY HENRY FEAGAN.V Witnesses.

A. P. CUDD, J. K. HoTTAL. 

